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Community Topic: VirtualRun

Back in January 2012 I made a promise to a friend. In order to support her dream of doing a Warrior Dash 5K obstacle course/run, I agreed to do it with her. Note that I had never been running in my life. I was also the heaviest I’d been in my life. With the race not until September, I knew I had time to figure it out so I did what I always do—procrastinate. When I lost my job that March I decided that I no longer had an excuse and it was time to get my butt in gear. I started researching programs that teach you how to run and started the Couch to 5K plan. Within a few weeks I noticed that I started looking forward to my afternoon walks/runs. Soon they became morning walks/runs. I love to sleep in, so this was a shocking development. As I saw my pace jump from a 15 minute mile to a 13 minute mile I started to get excited. Each week I was shaving time off my pace. I was liking running! I knew I was hooked when one day I went out in the rain because it was a run day and therefore I had to run. Needless to say, I have become someone who runs. I even ran in a wet, snowy, slushy storm and in temps that had a “real feel” of zero degrees. (ZERO DEGREES! Yes, I may need a mental evaluation.) I’ve had an injury or two and life distractions come up. But one of the ways I try to keep focused is to have a race to look forward to. We did the Warrior Dash (with a bad ankle and almost two months off just before the race for PT it took just over an hour). I have also completed five 5K since November 2012. Each race I get a little faster (except this last one, but that is my fault to allowing life to get in the way of running) and am up to a pace of less than 12 minutes per mile. I hope to get down to a 10 minute mile soon.

One added benefit of my new hobby was a 20 pound weight loss and the joy of dropping a couple pants sizes. I made no change to a diet—I eat fairly well already; just added that elusive thing called exercise. Not only is it fun, it is the best stress relief I have ever experienced. You know those times when people get on your last nerve but you know that smacking them is not an option? I hear you can get arrested for assault, and well, I don’t look so hot in horizontal stripes. Those are the times I hit the pavement and run it out.

Another thing to know about me is that I am an unapologetic sci-fi geek. While some of my friends roll their eyes when I talk about the latest show on SyFy or BBCAmerica (those Brits do great sci-fi). In the past I’ve been enamored with shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Primeval, Firefly, and Torchwood. And of course I love Doctor Who. I credit my father and grandfather for this love. I remember watching Star Trek: The Next Generation with my dad while we folded laundry. One of my early childhood memories is watching Doctor Who with his big ol’ scarf with my grandfather on WGBH when I visited them. I am counting down the days to the Doctor Who 50th anniversary special. I can’t wait to see David Tennant back in the trench coat. Mmmm. But I digress. “What does all of this have to do with running?” you ask. A dear friend who is well aware of my obsessions passed on a link to a DW 50th anniversary themed virtual run. There is a pretty medal and the proceeds go to the One Fund for the Boston Marathon victims. I knew I had to sign up. Now I am hooked. You make your donation, run your distance when it fits in your schedule, and you get a medal. I’ve had so much fun I decided to host my own virtual run. And what better cause than PinkForPam? To find out how to get in on the action and take a peek at what the medal will look like head over to the FB event page (https://www.facebook.com/events/410061642433095/). Since this is a first for me, I figured we will start small and open it up to 50 participants. You can also get in on the action by clicking the paypal button here. All net proceeds benefit PinkForPam: